Empire of Light Review (2022)

It might be a bit overkill for the Academy to have awarded Olivia Colman three Oscar nominations in four years, but the multi-layered ball of repressed pride that Colman plays just might be the performance of the year.

The film is set in a theater in a small English town in 1981 and though it focuses on Olivia Colman's character of Hilary, there's a rich slice-of-life quality to it.

Sam Mendes has long had a knack of capturing the atmospheres of time and place: The suburban purgatory of American Beauty, the sepia-toned Depression-era Midwest of Road to Perdition, the hellish warscapes of Iraq in Jarhead and World War I in 1917.

At the same time, Mendes tries to equate a cinema in 1981 as the height of theater going, when he's at least 40 years removed from the era of movie palaces and event screenings. Although it could be argued that  Jaws and Star Wars might have jump-started a new weekened-centered craze of moviegoing, that's not what's really being portrayed (unless the original cut of Chariots of Fire had space lasers or sharks I am unaware of).  There's a curious vagueness here from a director who's generally so exacting with his settings. It's also hard to get a grip on exactly what kind of an English town this is: Vaguely somewhere that's not London is as much as I can gather.

The crust of Hilary's arc is that it throws her into two relationships: A numbing dalliance with her cheating boss (Colin Firth) and a May-December romance (Michael Ward as Stephen) that's as dreamy as the movies that Hilary and her crew never actually get around to watching (irony alert!). Colman plays the self-loathing with the former and the genuine affection with the latter beautifully.

There's also the obligatory referencing of the times (the Thatcher era) and the racism involved in Ward's character. It's a sure bet that any film that attempts to discuss race (particularly by a White director) will have loud critics whatever you do, so it's best to just ignore that: This isn't a film with any profound proscribed solutions to race, but the existence of a Black character in a more racist era than the present is dealt realistically and in a way that serves the story.

The film picks up significantly in the second act with two or three strong twists that are cleverly deployed. It's revealed halfway through the film that Hilary suffers from a certain mental illness but the foreshadowing is subtle enough to provide a true a-ha moment that pieces together the story retroactively. 

It's certainly not one of the best works of Sam Mendes but the film has a certain charm that keeps the film fresh.

New Oscar nominees I saw 1917, Parasite, Little Women plus Judy (and JoJo Rabbit)

I watched "1917" "Parasite" and "Little Woman" and felt they were excellent choices for the Oscar. Although it's not in the video, "JoJo Rabbit" also blew me away.

With "Little Woman", I admit I had a bit of bias against both period pieces of this era and
films that seemed to be targeted to females. I had to push through those biases in the first half hour to keep my mind on the movie but once the love triangles and tuberculosis and family problems mounted, I am glad I stuck it through. The film is emotionally there but has its own sense of joy about those lucky
enough to be born to a family of sisters. The film celebrates an earlier era of courtship where people didn’t meet grinding on the dance floor or on dating apps while also commenting on the distances it might create. On the whole, it's a very emotionally satisfying movie.


"1917", "Parasite", and "Jojo Rabbit" all blew me away.


"1917" is a technical marvel that makes you aware of the additive value of good cinematography in the best possible way. Roger Deakins is perhaps the only household name among cinematographers and he will be even more famed after this. Like "Little Woman" the film starts off slow and it builds and someone on home viewing might give up on it but that would be a massive shame because the film is an emotional ride. It's almost existential as a man has to find his purpose and then his purpose overtakes him to the point of exhaustion and everything else.


"JoJo Rabbit" I was concerned about because I'd just seen "Death of Stalin" and "Life is Beautiful" so I thought this has been done before but I don't know why I made this foolish mistake in retrospect: How many films have there really been in this genre?  The film makes the right movie at every juncture of the story and is supremely clever in its view of the war from a child's point of view. Sam Rockwell, once again, is great (he's on quite a roll), and Scarlet Johansson steals the show. She handles the arduous task of raising a difficult child as a single mother with such joy and resolve that I have no problem with her winning an Oscar this year. It handles World War II with a mix British absurdist humor (not unlike Monty Python which tackled the same subject matter), poetry and sentiment.


"Parasite" is the kind of deep dive into class that you don't see too often. It's extraordinarily layered in symbolism and visually dense. The film's biggest trick is introducing us to a tragedy (the class divide), but showing a larger tragedy lurking underneath the surface and building up the tension until these two tragedies collide. It plays with time and dramatic irony (what some characters know while others don't) perfectly well.

"Judy" is basically a TV movie with a good performance but what's the point of a movie if only to show off a good performance?





And here's my JoJo Rabbit review (with two strangers)

Adam Spector and I reveal our top five films of 2019 to date

Re-evaluating my Summer of 2009 list 10 years later

This is my reaction to a Summer preview I wrote 10 years ago for Examiner.com. I will comment on italics on whether I actually saw the film and how they compared to my expectations

In the first month of Summer alone, most of the heavy hitters have already I arrived. I recommend seeing The Soloist, Star Trek, Angels and Demons, Night at the Museum 2 (it is better than you might expect), and Up before moving onto the newer films:

The Taking of Pelham 123 (June 12th)

The thriller centered on a hostage situation in a New York subway car is a remake of a 1974 film starring Walter Matthau. The vast majority of Denzel Washington roles the past few years involve him as a law official of some sort in some tense situation (see: Déjà vu, Inside Man, Out of Time, Training Day). Pelham 123 takes Denzel Washington, action hero, and places him in a Hithckock-like situation of the ordinary man thrust into extraordinary circumstances.

Did I see this? Yep, on Netflix during its mailing delivery days.

Reactions: More or less what I was expected. Travolta channels a lot of his a—hole character from “Swordfish” and Washington is practically begging Saturday Night Live to hire someone whose main specialty is Denzel Washington impressions because his acting in this particular era was extremely predictable in a series of rote action thrillers (SNL hired Jay Pharoah the following year). The characters are familiar, in other words, and the (recycled) plot doesn’t aim high but is sufficient entertainment.

Bruno (July 10th)

Sacha Baron Cohen brought something truly original when he took to the screen with Borat in 2006. Although a little crude, the cultural collision between the primitive Kazak Borat with the Western world produced results that were sharply satirical, shocking, and flat-out hilarious. The initial problem I had with Bruno is that it’s 2009 and the silliness of homophobia is old news by now. Or is it? Sacha Baron Cohen dresses up as a flamboyantly gay Austrian reporter and, much like Borat, will seek to expose the underbelly of American prejudice. He might be successful or he might spark considerable controversy along the way but for the laughs alone, it will be worth it to find out.

Did I see this? In the theater.

Reactions: I was viscerably disturbed and needed to clench my palate so bad that I walked into the theater next door and watched The Hangover afterwards. I don’t know where the line is between watching people have uncomfortable sex and flat-out porn but this was just all too much for me. Whether it was worth some over-arching point, I admit I was nauseating through some of the film, but it’s hard to make the case that America is too homophobic when you’re sexually assaulting them and/or violating their personal space. Sacha Baron Cohen’s humor was still present but pretty far removed.

Moon (June 12th)

I don’t know if I have ever been so intrigued by the movie critic blurbs that are intercut with action scenes during the trailer as I was with this movie. Among the blurbs for “Moon”, “Fantastic! Superb! Do Not Hesitate To Line Up For This One,” “One of those Rare Sci-Fi Gems,” and “Brainy and Thoughtful.” Let’s start with the third one. Summer movies have historically relied on high amounts of escapism and low amounts of thoughtfulness. In the case that a summer film is thought-provoking, it certainly wouldn’t be advertised. Some ambitious science-fiction films like Minority Report, I Robot and The Island have made their way onto the summer slate in previous years with mixed success but they mostly have been marketed as action films. Moon seeks to be more “A.I.” than “Minority Report” and seems to be shooting as high as “2001: A Space Odyssey.”

Did I see this? No but in my defense, I don’t know if it was ever playing. It enjoys a status as a cult film and certainly has grown in stature as lead actor Sam Rockwell won an Oscar and this is one of his best performances. 

Away We Go (June 5th)

The film stars John Krasinski and Maya Rudolph as a couple looking to find the perfect home to raise their child. It has a definite indie feel. Entertainment Weekly critic Owen Gilberman describes as, ‘the comedy of quirkiness, in which ''eccentric'' characters are placed on screen to inspire an amused whatever! shrug.” The film intrigues me mostly because of director Sam Mendes. Away We Go is just Mendes’ fifth film (and first film to be made at such a low scale) but he has had many accolades including a best director Oscar for American Beauty. Mendes has an uncanny ability to capture mood and atmosphere whether it’s the underworld of Depression-era Chicago in Road to Peridition, married life in 1950’s New England or the angst of modern-day Suburbia in American Beauty. Away We Go stars two characters straight out of the popular blog stuffwhitepeoplelike.com, but I have a feeling he can transcend them.

Did I see this? I tried once on TV and might have even tried renting it. I like Sam Mendes’s style and how he commits well to world-building. However, John Krasinski and Maya Rudolph overthinking the fact that they’re about to have kids in a way that isn’t particularly comedic or dramatic didn’t feel particularly interesting and after the first couple scenes I gave up.

Land of the Lost (June 5th)

Will Ferrell stars in this big-screen adaptation of the notoriously low-budget television show. A good rule of thumb with remakes is that remaking a film or TV series that was originally good invites comparisons to the original while remaking something that had failed potential to be good is ideal. With one of the best comedic actors of filmdom in Will Ferrell and a most interesting supporting cast of fresh faces including Tropic Thunder’s Danny McBride  (good article on McBride found here) and Lonely Planet’s Jorma Taccone), there’s plenty to be excited about here.

Did I see this? In the theater 

Reactions: Second worst film of the year behind “Bruno.” The film’s jokes per minute ratio is really low unless you count people wandering around in poop or an unruly monkey (voiced by Jorma Taccone) being annoying. At the same time, I hardly know how I could have seen this coming because the trailer was actually quite appealing.

Food Inc (June 19th)

Michael Moore seems to be the only successful muckraker in the world of film in terms of garnering large audiences and critical acclaim (although I have to give Morgan Spurlock some credit for Supersize Me). Hopefully, there's room for one more in this expose about the evils of the food industry. It's been a popular topic since Eric Schlosser's "Fast Food Nation" became a best seller and there was even a fictionalized version of Eric's film. In documentary form, however, Food Inc. could have even greater entertainment value and be far more educational. For further reading, see the official site.

Did I see this? By mail order Netflix 

Reactions: I’m not a humongous documentary person (If it’s simply an educational expose about a topic, I prefer reading or watching videos shorter than 90 to 120 minutes), nor am I an expert at dissecting the documentary as an art form. As far as a good example of an art form I’m not generally crazy about, this is quite good. It should be noted that in this year, Michael Moore followed up some of his game-changing world with “Capitalism: A Love Story” which is a mess of a film with no thesis.

I Love You, Beth Cooper (July 10th)

Imagine if the high school valedictorian declares his love for the high school cheerleader in the 8graduation speech? A fairly simple concept for a teen angst film but one with plenty of potential. That's at the heart of this film. The lead Paul Rust has made a name for himself in the world of internet sketch comedy and the female lead, Hayden Panettiere, has a chance to earn her movie star cred with this role.

Did I see this? I listened to the audio book two or three years later on a road trip. Then I saw the movie in parts on YouTube when you couldn’t upload more than 10 minutes at a time.  

Reactions: First things first, the book’s prose is a little on the weak sauce side and the dialogue is a little stilted. The film sticks pretty closely to the book so that doesn’t help. However, this is a really fetching premise and I like Andrea Savage in it (she plays a fairly minor role in it, though).

10 Current Directors worth following

10 Directors to acquaint yourself with: We all know Stephen Spielberg and George Lucas when it comes to blockbusters, Oliver Stone when it comes to controvoursey, Woody Allen for comedy but there are a lot of directors that the average filmgoer might not know of who are doing great work in the 21st century. Being familiar with these names of mostly up-and-coming directors will help you make a safer bet next time you’re in the movie theater line or videostore.
1. Fernando Meirelles: “Stick to your village and you’ll appeal to the whole world,” is the philosophy Meirelles preaches to global filmmakers trying to make it in the global era and one he perfected in the landmark 2002 film City of God, a gripping tale of a young photographer trying to make the most of a short-lived existence in the slums of Brazil. His follow-up which transported the Brazillian filmmaker to the shantytowns of Kenya in an adaptation of The Constant Gardener was received just as well this past year. In an ever-increasing global network of film, Meirelles is paving the way for third world filmmakers hoping to import a brand of filmmaking that retains their local flavor.
2. Wes Anderson: Anderson’s films are a delicately textured feast for the eyes and ears. Unique touches like David Bowie songs translated into Portuguese are infused into eclectic film scores and he pays equal attention to visual tones. His films often feature a central character surrounded by a colorful group of characters and by sorting out the kinks in the relationships in his life, he comes to the conclusion that love them or hate them, be greatful for all the people in your life because they come in handy someday.
3. Sam Mendes: His first film, American Beauty, struck a chord with the American public in capturing the depression of suburban conformity and won an Oscar. His second film Road to Perdition, didn’t get quite as acclaim as the first but still had its admirers (including myself, it’s a personal favorite of mine), while three times did not prove a charm for Jarhead, a film injected with just a bit too much testosterone to be effective. Still, traces of his distinct style are noticeable in all three films: Mendes tends to work from the outside in. In three entirely different settings, the Persian Gulf, The Mob Scene in Depression-Era Chicago, Mendes does a wonderful job, first and foremost, of portraying a world and the characters who inhabit it and the story takes off from there.
4. Stephen Sodebergh: First off, I have to admit that it’s kind of irritating how for such a self-proclaimed champion of independent filmmaking, it seems like the sole purpose of some of his movies is to give his friends Julia Roberts, Brad Pitt, and George Clooney something to do. Faults aside, Sodebergh is a very innovative filmmaker whose never-ending desire to experiment makes it so that even if he comes up with a dud like Ocean’s 12 or Full Frontal, you have to give him credit for at least trying something new. When he gets it right, like in Traffic, the results can be classic
5. Rob Zemeckis-Stephen Spielberg’s lesser-known protégé has made some of the most memorable classics of the last 20 years showing great range and innovation. He has explored both the fun and serious sides of the sci-fi genre with the Back to the Future trilogy and Contact respectively. His wacky ideas include infusing the gangster film with animated cartoons in Who Framed Roger Robert and (along with co-writer Tom Hanks) basing an entire film on a marooned castaway befriending a volleyball in Cast Away and surprisingly both worked.
6. Kevin Smith-His humor is admittingly low-brow, but as crude humor goes, you’d be hard-pressed to find a more intelligent filmmaker than Smith. To treat his landmark film, Clerks (and now Clerks II) as representative of his work would not be giving him enough credit for his range. Chasing Amy is considered by some to be an insightful take on relationships (personally, I didn’t like it but others do), Dogma is probably one of the best religious satires ever made. While bashed by some, I found Mallrats is a great send-up to adolescent aimlessness. It’s moral is priceless: that the best things in life are the little joys (a new type of pretzel, a signing at the comic store, etc) that are found at your neighborhood mall. And that’s what it comes down to for Smith. Is there anything in life more serious than that?
7. Bryan Singer-Working with small budgets as shown with The Usual Suspects, Bryan Singer demonstrated his ability as a great storyteller. With bigger budgets and biggest casts, Singer has still retained the human element but great special effects were added. He has done much to resurrect the superhero summer blockbuster with X-Men and Superman Returns (my review of Superman Returns was bad, but I think that Singer did a good job with what was given to him), by bringing realism to the genre. I’m not certain of this but it’s a good bet that pretty much everything from The Hulk to The Fantastic Four to Batman Begins took cues from him.
8. Peter Weir-For the 1985 hit film Witness, one of the very few films to use Pennsylvania’s Amish country as its setting, Australian Peter Weir was brought over to Hollywood for the project because they wanted someone with an outsider’s sensitivity and that has been one of his trademarks. Weir shows extroadinary attention to detail in his films, which helped make 2003 sea epic Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World, set during the Napoleanic Wars, one of the best period pieces to date. He also has a great track record of single-handedly transforming the careers of leading actors he has worked with: Harrison Ford in Witness, Robin Williams in Dead Poets’ Society, and Jim Carrey in Truman Show
9. Alexander Payne-Payne is a UCLA Film School grad who studied abroad in Europe during his undergrad days. It was there where he picked up a fondness for Italian neorealism and he is now basically this generation’s answer to The Bycicle Thief. His last two films, About Schmidt and Sideways have both won multiple accolades, and his first two Citizen Ruth and Election, a high school comedy made with MTV films have developed cult followings. Schmidt and Sideways are marked by brilliant casting choices and a humor that comes from the subtleties and joys of life and they are emotionally affecting in a way few movies are.
10. Edward Zwick-With Glory, Legends of the Fall, The Last Samurai and the upcoming Blood Diamond, Zwick is most at home making the epic. He is great at period pieces, capturing time and place, and the quality of the art direction in his films (The recreation of 19th century San Fransisco for the opening of Last Samurai, for example) gets taken for granted all too often. He infuses films with wonderfully intense action scenes, and for making his films borderline action/period piece hybrids rather than period pieces, he is often overlooked by the academy, although he did win an Oscar as producer of Shakespeare in Love.